The type of hinge presented here is one to be used for lavatory doors in airplanes; however, it is also applicable to doors for telephone booths, unit baths and many other items.
The space required by a folding door operation is generally smaller than for an ordinary door.
Usually, double actuated piano hinges are used for folding doors.
These hinges, however, do not completely block either light or odors, consequently, when they are used for doors of airplane lavatories, these shortcomings may inconvenience passengers sitting nearby. In order to avoid this problem, a rubber-coated cloth or a similar material is used to cover the hinge areas. Nevertheless, this solution has drawbacks, because black stains appear on the cover by being rubbed during operation. On the other hand, the double hinge system has drawbacks because of the excess noise and does not always operate smoothly due to unwanted vibration.
This present invention is intended to solve the above problems, by offering a higher degree of airtightness and a greater smoothness of operation.